November 5 2002
New York Aerie
Interior designer Carl D’Aquino
knew from the start that he was dealing with unique clients.
"They come to New York to relax," he says. The couple
he’s describing commissioned D’Aquino and Francine
Monaco, partners in the design firm D’Aquino Monaco,
to create a contemplative environment high above Manhattan’s
busy streets—a place to retreat, recharge and meditate.The
most important requirement, and totally out of D’Aquino
Monaco’s control, was a view of the Chrysler Building.
It took a year, but once the couple found the space they wanted—1,700
square feet in the Museum Condominium next door to MoMA—all
systems were go. While their art collection—especially
one particular Mondrian—inspired the look of the interior,
it was the 180-degree view that was to star and around which
everything else in the apartment revolved. The idea was to
create the most open space possible, exaggerated with vistas
and alleys that would allow one to see the Manhattan skyline
from every angle.The couple considered the views so significant
that room designations were based on what was seen from the
windows—paying close attention to how the "art"
outside worked with the art inside. A huge 1st-century Roman
mosaic fragment near the dining area makes a wonderful counterpoint
to the Chrysler Building gleaming in the distance, while Roy
Lichtenstein’s "Nude With Yellow Beach Bag"
in the living room reflects the interior’s color palette.
Indeed, even the floor-to-ceiling windows were treated like
masterpieces, framed in oiled bronze colored a rich ox blood.
Elegant, motorized mesh screens slide into invisible floor
pockets to block the sun when necessary.Taking the place of
conventional walls, sliding panels were designed to achieve
the desired openness. Like great works of art, they hang from
steel hardware hidden in a ceiling-height reveal and stabilized
with invisible floor pins. Used throughout, they not only
define the space, they change it. The result is an apartment
that brings the very essence of New York into focus and yet
creates a tranquil, inviting interior atmosphere that stands
in sharp contrast to the world outside. "One reason it
was such a wonderful project," muses D’Aquino,
"is that we were asked to create everything for the apartment
for a totally integrated look. It was a very collaborative
effort, and it worked as well as it did because our clients
were inspired, asking for our best ideas and selecting the
most exciting options we presented."Save for some wood-plank
flooring, all of the structural elements are made of giallo
elena limestone and stucco Veneziano finished in a uniformly
soft, grainy texture. The colors—taupe, ochre, linen
and ox blood—play off each other in Mondrian-esque blocks,
appearing on walls, in the limestone floor and even as sofa
pillows.Much of the furniture that appears throughout the
house was designed by D’Aquino Monaco with pickled oak
frames, upholstered in off-white linen. A few 1930s era chairs,
while more curvaceous, are nearly twins to the new pieces.
A sleek leather-and-steel chair echoes both the curving wall
and the oxblood color in the vestibule. Except in the den/guest
room, where a deeper palette was used, custom sand-toned Tibetan
area rugs are used throughout the apartment, their weave creating
a boxy pattern on the floors.The bedroom, with its tufted,
upholstered walls and bed, and wool carpeting, evokes a softer
sensibility. A glorious space, it is spare and sensual at
the same time. The sliding wall that defines the bedroom is
kept open, allowing an incomparable view that flows from bed,
to living room and out into the great beyond. The master bath
is equally seductive. There, the wall covering of rice paper
sandwiched between two sheafs of glass with silver leaf behind
the entire assembly, seems to glow. Nickel-plated fixtures,
a counter and sink of integrated glass and glass-doored shower
complete the look. Seemingly simple, the entire design of
this celestial pied-a-terre betrays no evidence of the painstaking
attention to detail that makes it all work. From colors to
textures to shapes, the beauty of the residence is that it
answers the needs of the clients in a way that even they couldn’t
imagine. With the whir of the city all around, they can kick
back, enjoying the stars and moon, the brilliant sun and the
change of seasons, without setting foot outside.
Story by Michele Keith
Photography by Billy Cunningham |
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The Manhattan skyline gets served
along with meals in the dining area. French chairs ca. 1937
from Frank Rogin Inc.
The apartment’s color palette
is encapsulated in the vestibule. Leather and steel chair
from Reymer Jourdan Antiques. Stucco finishes by Orazio De
Gennaro.
By day sunlight floods the living
room. At night concealed lightning illuminates walls and artwork.
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